Eighth-grade EASA tour gives potential students preview of program

Eighth-grade EASA tour gives potential students preview of program

Posted on 04/27/2015

Eighth
graders from Patton and Duniway middle schools visited McMinnville High
School’s Engineering & Aerospace Sciences Academy (EASA)
on April 22. The students, who are interested in applying for EASA,
spent the morning at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum, where
EASA is located.

“This is the biggest turnout we’ve ever had,” said Sean Burke,
assistant principal of MHS. “We have 130 students here today, and six
from out of district.”

The middle school students cycled through classrooms to hear
presentations by current EASA students and see them demonstrate projects
that represent the program curriculum for each year.

“The work of engineers will have an impact on society,” EASA teacher
MaryBeth Kramer told the students. “You’re going to be working on
open-ended designs to work on a justifiable problem and come up with an
original solution.”

The hands-on program is one of the career pathway programs at MHS
that help prepare students for college and careers. EASA is a STEM
(Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) program that also allows
students to earn college credit while meeting high school graduation
requirements.

The field trip ended with student panels that offered the eighth
graders a chance to question the EASA students. Questions ranged from
how the dress code works, what the teachers are like, how the
transportation works between the high school and the academy, and how
many electives are required for EASA.